


The Creation of Pidge

by DifferentChild



Series: What Doesn't Kill You Makes You Stronger [1]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Female Pidge | Katie Holt, Female Pronouns for Pidge | Katie Holt, Gen, Pidge | Katie Holt-centric
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-04
Updated: 2019-04-05
Packaged: 2020-01-04 22:43:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,573
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18353225
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DifferentChild/pseuds/DifferentChild
Summary: How did Pidge come about? How did Katie make a person so convincing that the Galaxy Garrison was fooled? The story of how Pidge Gunderson came to be.





	1. Chapter 1

Pidge Gunderson and Katie Holt had really begun to merge in many ways. She had spent some time at the Garrison as Pidge. And while she really wasn’t a boy, she didn’t fit gender norms either. So it was not hard to pass in that area. Part of entering the Garrison as another individual meant creating a whole new persona. Falsifying school records, birth certificate, proof of address and family, medical records….everything. It should’ve been harder than it was, but Katie Holt was no small fry. She was a computer/tech genius in her own right, incredibly intelligent, not to mention the daughter of two respected scientists, and the sister of an up and coming young science officer. Hacking had been easy since she was still in her single digits.

She shouldn’t have had to enter the Garrison under a false persona but she was banned from the premises, permanently according to Iverson. Jerk.

Researching normal people was important. Her grades were exceptional. Her intelligence off the charts. Pidge had to be intelligent, above average, but not Katie. He had to have a family that was explainable, but that could not come in. Traveling for work was a common enough reason and legitimate too. Who did he live with? Well one parent was usually home but of course not when needed. Then he was staying with a friend. Proof of address was easy enough for the many apartment complexes nearby. A birth certificate could be forged easily enough depending on the location in which “he” was born. Not locally, but they moved to this area not terribly long ago. That way it would be harder to explain why no teachers nearby knew this “Pidge.” The medical records were the hardest. Why? Because of her own medical history. Katie’s medical history was long. Matt used to joke that it was almost as long as her. He was kidding...mostly.

Pidge had been in and out of hospitals since she was born. Colleen’s pregnancy with Matt was completely normal. She had morning sickness and normal pregnancy woes. But mostly it had been normal. But with Katie? It was a journey from the get go. EXTREME morning sickness. Bedrest because Katie was almost miscarried on several occasions. Colleen had trouble gaining weight/keeping it down. She felt weak. The doctors were concerned that they almost couldn’t find a heartbeat several times it was so faint. Premature labor almost happened several times. And then it couldn’t be stopped. There was too much risk to mom and baby. They were able to push it to 25 weeks, barely. It was a trial and both almost died before Katie came into the world, having to be resuscitated. 

For the first few months of her life, she basically lived in the NICU. Colleen was in the hospital for a bit herself, but she insisted upon trying to take care of her baby. She and Sam would take turns sitting with her. The Garrison completely understood and allowed them all the time needed. This was their child. They weren’t even sure if she would survive...Matt insisted upon being allowed to stay with his sister too. His parents weren’t going to keep him away. Even if there was a low chance of survival. 

They’d named her Katherine Marie Holt. But Katherine seemed too big a name for a baby so little. Too much. So they called her Katie. Little Katie had some scares. She had some concerns. But she made it through, all the way till her due date. It was a miracle. Baby Holt had to stay a bit past that, bless Garrison medical coverage, before they would release her to her home. They had to take some equipment home to make sure that she was alright, but the doctors said that hopefully she wouldn’t need things like that when she grew up. A warming that she might have brain damage, developmental delays, or medical issues. She might not be the child her brother was. 

Her parents smiled. It didn’t matter. She was theirs. They’d take on any challenge that came their way. So would Katie. She’d made it this far.

And she did. It was a long road, but looking at her now? Most people just assume she got the short gene. That was why she had to do so much research into what people were supposed to be like. “His” parents were shorter as well. So the height wouldn’t seem out of place. All vitals were normal. To make it seem more real, she threw some mild allergies in there. Pidge had to be somewhat realistic and like her. Illnesses? Normal ones, nothing chronic. Injuries? Normal kid things, healing in a typical fashion. A few broken bones. Appendix, out. Dental records had to be similar. Thankfully teeth were one of the few things that weren’t a concern. 

He would need glasses. Katie’s face was too much like her brothers. People didn’t look past those glasses. HIs eyesight would be off. That was easy as both her father and brother wore glasses. Katie didn’t need them, and hopefully she wouldn’t, but Pidge had to seem...smaller. Not physically. But...well, she was a bit larger than life at times when she got riled up. It was a joke within her family that she and Colleen were quite similar and that’s why they butted heads at times. So Pidge had to be quieter and more respectful of his elders. No disciplinary issues for Pidge...unlike Katie.

Pictures. They would need pictures of him and him with his family. so she just had to use photoshop there. Not hard when you are used to hacking and forging things. She’d had to use it already to sneak into the Garrison. Alter photos of her and her family, make them his. Find people online that looked similar, but different. Not let her hair be as bright in the photos, let that be “dyed” if they asked in person. 

Details. That was how she made Pidge come alive.


	2. Telling Mom

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You try telling your mom you want to run off and join the military that you were banned from and lie about your identity. Because that's going to go SO great. Right? Yea no.

Colleen Holt was the hardest part of this whole situation. She had to tell her mother something. They certainly were at odds sometimes, but she couldn’t just up and leave her. Not with everything going on...So they had “the talk.” Not that talk. They’d had that conversation a few years ago and Katie had gone LALALALALALALALALALALALA the entire time and said she was too young for this and that that was what the internet was for. Not an acceptable response and she was forced to sit through it all.

Now though? Now she had to tell her mother her plan. Everything else was in place. She had her friend’s mom agree to step in. Katie had done a lot for her son in terms of friendship so she could do it. She made her PROMISE not to tell her mother, on the condition she would tell her first. 

Taking in a deep breath, Katie knocked on her mother’s bedroom door. Her parents bedroom.“Mom? Do you have a minute?”

This is a surprise. Katie rarely knocks if the door is open…”Of course sweetheart. Come in. What is it?” If Katie knocked, it was serious.

“I need to talk to you about something. And please hear me out before you say anything. This is really important to me.”

“Alright. Go ahead.” Neither Holt woman was known for their silence or patience (with each other that is). It was a normal mother/daughter relationship but this...this sounded a bit concerning.

Another deep breath. Breathe in. Breathe out. Breathe in. Breathe out. You can do this. “I want to enroll at the Garrison.” Preemptively holding up a hand. “Hear me out. Please. Dad and Matt have been gone for a bit now. We still have no information. You know as well as I do that Lieutenant Shirogane would NOT have made that kind of mistake. He was a star pilot. He racked up ridiculous hours in the simulators in addition to actual flights. A Junior Officer looking at making Senior Officer after this mission. Why would he crash on a routine, albeit far, mission? It was a science mission, mom. That’s not a dangerous one. I think they’re lying to us. I tried to hack into the Garrison, as you know.” Both hands went up to beg her to wait with the scolding for that. They’d already gone through that once. 

“Please. Let me finish. You can scold me again afterwards if you want. But it was important. They won’t tell us ANYTHING. It’s wrong. They just told us they were dead. You don’t believe it either. You can’t. They’re out there somewhere. I can feel it. Matt and I are thicker than thieves as you always say. We’re close and I would feel it.”

Not wrong. You two are thicker than thieves. I swear, if only you and Matt had been twins…Dry eyes would not last much longer for mom and they were already tearing up for Katie.

“If I go in as a student, I can get closer and get information. I know I was banned after that incident, which is ridiculous because you work there and my doctors are there. But that’s besides the point. I plan to go undercover. I already have an application ready to be sent in.” I may have already sent it. “Complete with pictures, records, and everything. I would be masquerading as a boy.”

A snort was heard.

“Mommmm. I can pull it off. I’ve spent enough time with Dad and Matt. I always hung out with Matt and his friends. My best friend from school is a boy. I was raised around military personnel. I don’t lie within societal gender norms anyway so that won’t be too hard. I’ve said “his” family travels for work and Beau and Lily’s mom said that I could use her. Because I said that “he” was staying with a friend’s family. I promised to tell you after I asked her so that she wouldn’t tell you first. But please mom. I’ll stop here because I’ve got everything covered. I can do this. I NEED to do this. For Dad. For Matt. For You. And for Me. We need answered and I’m going to get them.”

Sighing in relief, Katie sat down, looking at her mom, silently pleading with her.

“You have thought this through quite a bit. But I have a few other questions for you. What about your period? How would you hide that? Your breasts? They’re developing at this age. Your health? You’ve been around the Garrison since you were a child. Your face is recognizable. How will you handle that? That will be the biggest visible obstacle. They know what you look like. Also, most boys don’t have hair quite like yours. Most importantly, your health. How will you handle any issues? You can’t just go to the clinic because they’ll find out your gender. They will also question your falsified medical records. I presume you took care of that.”

Nodding, Katie swallowed her fears. Colleen wasn’t going to let her do this. “I will hide...supplies in my room. I’ll take it to the bathroom. I’ll always use the stall and just say I’m shy. Some guys are shy about using the restroom.”

“Where did you learn that one?” Not a usual topic of conversation.

A grin. “One of Matt’s friends.”

“Do I want to know?” Exasperation.

“No. But like I said, I’ll use a stall. The pants aren’t white so I’ll be fine. I’ll bind and wear camis as needed. I already started practicing. That’s not too hard and mom they’re not too big yet.” Probably won’t be given that everything else seems to be small. But I’m okay with that one. “I’m going to wear Matt’s glasses. The Garrison fixed his eyes and he left them with me. It’s the one piece of him left that I can take with me there. Obviously. And...I’m gonna cut my hair.”

“No...baby you love your long hair.” So did she. That was one of the things they agreed upon.

“I do. But it’s a sacrifice I can make. It’ll grow back. It will. I can live with that. Haircuts are temporary, family is forever.” 

It was silly but to a barely 15 year old girl that was something big. She probably would’ve been called a boy at school were it not for her hair. That wouldn’t have entirely offended her but she was actually a girl. Funny that she was now going to pretend not to be. “They won’t recognize me with glasses and short hair.”

“Won’t you look too much like your brother?”

“Mmm. No. Matt was much taller at the Garrison. Still is. Also “Pidge” is from a short family. He wouldn’t be noticed as much.”

Amusement radiated from Colleen. “Pidge? You’re going with that? I thought you hated when Matt called you that.”

Shrug. “Eh, it’s something I can cling to. Plus it’s not even close to my actual name. No one at the Garrison knows me like that.”

The big issue was still coming. A big one that still hadn’t been answered to Colleen’s satisfaction. “And what about your health? You avoided that one and it’s a big one. You can’t put yourself in danger for this.”

“I won’t! I promise. I won’t even end up going into space because I know that’s half of where this is going.” No matter how much she wanted to at this point. “I can go to the clinic if it’s illness or injury. I still wear makeup to cover up some of my old scars that would be identifiable. I’ll be fine Mom. I promise. I can do it. Please. PLEASE. Let me do this. For all of us.”

“This is a big issue Katie. This is serious. If I let you do this then you would be putting yourself in danger, at risk. Not just yourself, but your father and brother, if they are out there, and I as well. We work there. It could negatively reflect on a parent and member. If you get caught then you won’t ever get what you’re looking for.”

“But if I succeed?” She knew it was a risk. It was a big one. But the rewards outweigh the risks. Numerous calculations had been done and the odds were better if she did this. 

“I can’t answer this immediately honey. I have to think about this. I have to seriously consider this because it is a big decision. I’ll think about it and we’ll talk again after I’ve had some time.”

Head hung, Katie nodded, wiping the tears from her eyes. 

Doctor of Botany, Computer scientist, and mom. The hurt was evident in her daughter's eyes. It couldn’t be hidden. “I still can’t get your answer immediately...but if you want I can make us some tea and you can sleep in here tonight. No matter my answer, you’re still my baby girl.”

“That sounds great Mom. Thanks.” 

And so Colleen made Katie’s favorite tea and the girls changed into their pajamas, snuggling up while the mom told her daughter stories about the early days with her father.

In the end, Colleen gave in. She couldn’t deny her daughter this chance when she was so determined. Her own feelings might have influenced the matter as well.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoyed that! I might write more about Pidge's POV in another fic at the Garrison in canon! It'd be fun. One shots or a multichap depending on what comes to mind. SO many fic ideas. Stay tuned!

**Author's Note:**

> Whatcha think? I'll have a little bit more to this. A few more chapters. At least one because LET'S BE REAL. Mom was mad she ran off, not that she joined the Garrison. And She'd have to have a way to explain her absence. Sooooooo. ;)


End file.
